Optimisation of extraction and purification methods (EPM) of high-value fucoidan from Scottish ocean-farmed seaweed for use as an antiviral and antimi

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The purpose of this PhD is to investigate the feasibility of producing fucoidan from farmed Scottish seaweed for use in antiviral and anti-inflammatory drugs. Fucoidan is a component in brown seaweed and has applications in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. The properties of this chemical are affected by its structure and bioactivity characteristics.This project will involve a collaboration between the school of engineering, the medical school and an industrial partner BioMara Ltd. This project will have 3 parts; The first of these is the collection of seaweed and extraction this will potentially involve the visiting of farms sourced by BioMara for collection. The fucoidan in the seaweed would then be extracted using various methods. Next, the extracted fucoidan would then be purified again using varying methods such as chromatography as well as more novel methods. These stages will be carried out under the supervision of Dr Simone Dimartino in the School of Engineering. The final stage is the analysis of the samples in this the material produced will be tested for its suitability for use as antiviral and anti-inflammatory drugs. This stage would be supervised by Dr Richard Sloan in the Medical School.The PhD will look to optimise the extraction and purification processes to produce fucoidan with enhanced properties for use in drugs. Multiple purification processes will be considered such as membrane separation processes and affinity-based chromatography. These methods plus other potentially novel methods will be considered to see which yields fucoidan with the most useful characteristics.